CKPG-TV

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = CKPG-TV
city =
station_
station_slogan = Northern BC's Very Own
station_branding = CKPG News
analog = 2 (VHF)
digital = "allocated 34 (UHF)"
other_chs = see below
affiliations = E!
network =
airdate = August 20, 1961
location = Prince George, British Columbia
callsign_meaning = CK Prince George
former_callsigns =
former_channel_numbers =
owner = Jim Pattison Broadcast Group
licensee =
sister_stations =
former_affiliations = CBC (1961-2008)
effective_radiated_power = 8.3 kW
HAAT = 329.7 m
coordinates = coord|54|2|47|N|122|53|37|W|type:landmark
homepage = [http://www.ckpg.com/ CKPG News]

CKPG-TV is a television station in Prince George, British Columbia. It is owned by Jim Pattison Group, and operates on VHF channel 2 and cable channel 3. It is a privately-owned affiliate of Canwest Media's E! system.

It also operates translators in Hixon (CKPG-TV-1, channel 10), Mackenzie (CKPG-TV-4, channel 6), and Quesnel (CKPG-TV-5, channel 13). Its signal is also transmitted via CBC-owned repeaters in Vanderhoof (CBCB-TV-1, channel 18), Fort Fraser (CBCB-TV-2, channel 13) and Fort St. James (CBCB-TV-3, channel 7), as well as on the Bell TV (channel 260) and Star Choice (channel 325) satellite services.

History

The station began operations on August 20, 1961, with a power output of 8,300 watts. It was co-owned with the local radio station of the same name, and was a CBC affiliate from its inception. The station's president and general manager, Bob Harkins, was one of the first people to appear on air.

In 1965, the station put a re-broadcaster in Quesnel on channel 13 into operation. In April 1969, both the radio and television stations were purchased by Vancouver's Q Broadcasting Ltd., owners of CHQM in Vancouver.

In 1973, Gord Leighton became the new general manager of both stations. By 1985, the station had six rebroadcasting stations, including three owned by the CBC, in operation in Hixon, Mackenzie, Quesnel, Vanderhoof, Fort Fraser and Ft. St. James.

In November 2 1986, Bob Harkins was awarded the Jeanne Clarke Memorial Local History Award for his contributions to local history and the community. He also served two terms as an alderman, and was involved with the station's operations until moving to rival radio station CJCI. He would return to CKPG-TV in the early 1990s, seen regularly on the program "Community Close-up", on news segments "Harkins Comment" and "Harkins History", and on a station-produced video, "Portraits: Bob Harkins".

In 1988, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) renewed the network licence for CKPG-TV and CFTK-TV Terrace, which allowed the two CBC affiliates to use the Corporation's microwave equipment to transfer syndicated programming, when it wasn't being used for CBC programming.

In 1990, Q Broadcasting Ltd. sold Radio Station CKPG Ltd., and its CKPG Television Ltd. subsidiary, to Monarch Broadcasting.

Bob Harkins died on November 28 2000 at the age of 69. Nearly a month later, on December 21, the CRTC approved the buyout of Monarch Broadcasting by the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group, a division of the Jim Pattison Group, which included CKPG-TV and its retransmission stations.

In 2001, CKPG-TV and its sister radio stations were a part of the 24-hour Relay for a Friend, held May 5th and 6th. This event raised $260,000 for cancer research and services.

In July 2002, Ken Kilcullen became General Manager of CKPG-TV along with its sisiter stations CKKN-FM and CKDV-FM.

Fall 2003 saw Bell ExpressVu add the station to its basic services, and in February 2004, Star Choice did the same.

In May 2004, CKPG-TV received the Special Program of the Year award from the BC Association of Broadcasters for its special "Crossing The Line", which looked at softwood lumber. On August 27 that year, the CRTC renewed CKPG-TV's licence, recognizing the station's commitment to local news (over ten hours of programming per week) and extending its CBC affiliation to August 31, 2008. Starting in September 2004, CKPG-TV and its sister radio stations were moved into new facilities at 1810 3rd Avenue.

CKPG's newscast, "CKPG News", is seen weekdays at 12 noon-12:30PM, 5PM-6PM, 6:30PM-7PM and 11PM-11:30PM; as well as CKPG News Week in Review on weekends, recapping the week's top local news stories.

When CBC Television went to a 24-hour schedule in October 2006, CKPG-TV increased the amount of CBC programming in its schedule. Along with the increase in overall hours of programming, the station provides over 12 hours a week in local programming including daily news and information programming focused on the issues affecting citizens in the city of Prince George and Northern British Columbia.

In September 2007, CKPG announced plans to disaffiliate from the CBC effective on August 31, 2008. Documents filed with the CRTC indicate the station will henceforth receive programming from CanWest Global. [http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Notices/2007/pb2007-117.htm Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2007-117, October 18, 2007] As a Global station CHAN already broadcasts over-the-air in Prince George (via a broadcast translator), the station became an E! affiliate, as did Kamloops affiliate CFJC. It was announced that the transmitters of CKPG will not be replaced by the CBC, and no transmitters are scheduled to be installed for the future. CBUT is now available on cable and satellite in Prince George.

It was announced that the transmitters of former CBC affiliate, E! affiliate CHAT-TV Medicine Hat will not be replaced by the CBC, and no transmitters are scheduled to be installed for the future in this area. All three areas are to be served by Jim Pattison Group and one other television network. However, despite the light Francophone population in the absence of an Anglophone network, Radio-Canada stations CBUFT Vancouver is still available over-the-air in Prince George and Kamloops, and CBXFT Edmonton is still available in Medicine Hat.

Transmitters

References

ee also

*CKDV-FM, formerly CKPG-AM
*CKKN-FM

External links

* [http://www.ckpg.com/ CKPG]
* [http://www.broadcasting-history.ca/listings_and_histories/television/histories.php?id=55&historyID=98 Canadian Communications Foundation - CKPG-TV History]
*